been to revamp all the holes so that we can play more all year round golf. In this part of the world many of the golf courses have the same problem of having too many closures or having to play to winter/temporary greens when the weather becomes too extreme.” “In the past we have probably lost a month or more of golf. During the wetter months the older clay based greens have remained closed and we have to play on temporary greens anyway. We know that until all the greens have been built to a USGA specification, we cannot market the club to encourage more rounds of golf and entertain more visiting parties.”
“It has been a costly exercise in the short term, but will hopefully provide long-term security and enjoyment for the club and its members.” “We had traditional push-up greens that were fairly flat; the new American style shapes are certainly going to test the members and my own staff with the additional maintenance required. The contours are quite extreme in places and we will have some fun keeping the grass in trim.” “The whole golf course sits inside about 100 acres, so the holes are quite tight, it will be interesting to see how members play the course in the future.” “The previous work hasn’t been without problems and I have shelved some of our winter work this year in favour of patching up or returfing some of the surrounds on previously constructed greens. In the first two phases of the greens renovation the new surrounds were planted with fescue and smooth stalk meadow grass. These grasses haven’t survived well because of the traffic to the greens and have died back, leaving tufted clumps that look unsightly.” “We will be renovating these areas and trying to replace with grasses that should be more uniform in growth and tolerate our local conditions much better.” “Currently we’re turfing the greens,
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with a grass mix of 25% Bardot, 25% Heriot, 25% Bargreen, 25% Barcrown. This turf is grown by Tillers Turf on a Tarmac Top sport rootzone and meets the current USGA specifications. On the surrounds Tillers have provided us with a mix consisting of 40% Bargold and 60% Barcrown. These mixes have worked well for us during the last 12 months, holding their colour well, surviving the heavy foot traffic, drought conditions and wet Lancashire weather. Both Phil Dewhurst of Rigby Taylor, and Tim Fell, Managing Director of Tillers, have been extremely helpful and professional throughout.” “Mike Crabtree, Sales Director of Whitemoss Amenities Ltd, has been the main supplier of materials for both phases of construction and has continued to provide excellent service throughout.” “We’re turfing the greens in conjunction with a works party of club members. It works well. Whenever there is some construction to do there are a dozen or so helping my staff to prepare and lay the turf. On projects like this the members feel like they are taking ownership of the course a bit more. They get on with the work well and are keen to help when necessary. We can get a green and surrounds completed in a day, which means that the turf can start to knit together quickly.” “As each green and surrounding area is finished we’ll keep the new turf moist. The turf was cut just before harvesting so it will probably not get another cut until the surface has had time to settle. I will also spray the turf with some Heritage as a preventative fungicide as we move towards the damper Autumnal months. Subject to the greens firming up, we may get some light dressings on the new greens if the weather holds out.” “We applied a pre-turf fertiliser 6:9:6 prior to turfing as well as incorporating some Nutrimate and Activate R Granules into the profile to help retain nutrients and improve the root growth.”
“Early in October I applied a 3:3:32 to
keep potassium levels up, with a little iron and seaweed, that should keep us ticking over nicely until further applications may be required. The greens will be monitored regularly, and anything untoward will be checked and resolved.”
“Once the greens have settled, and the weather stays fairly reasonable, we’ll keep the greens at around 9-10mm, cutting twice weekly with our John Deere pedestrian mowers. The light rolling will help to firm the greens, ready for play next spring. The club will be looking to get the greens open at the end of March, but we will be very dependant on the weather from here on in.” “Once the greens have rooted nicely, we will possibly look to carrying out some form of soil exchange in the way of coring to reduce the thatch layer in the turf.” “Apart from the greens, and one tee construction, there are a couple of additional bunkers to construct on the fairway. These should take place in the next couple of weeks. There are also two large areas of gorse planting to be fitted into the schedule.”
“I’m pleased with the way the work has gone this year, the contractor has piled in resources to make sure that the job has gone well.” Norman Finnerty, the Club President, added, “I’ve been a member here for over 35 years and we have a very active group committee. With the volunteers that come it’s as much a social day as a working day. Not all the members can help, many of us are retired and the work isn’t easy but, with plentiful coffee, some bacon butties and a good lunch, we’re available to help out Gary and his team. Hopefully future committees will continue to offer the same dedication in times of need.” “It makes it all the more enjoyable when you play the course, knowing that you have had some real input into the final outcome.”
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